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SFO Scores Multiple USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards

Published on : Saturday, March 12, 2016

The San Francisco International Airport (SFO) scored multiple awards for its food and beverage programs in the annual USA Today Readers’ Choice awards. The Airport was honored as 10Best winner in the “Best Airport for Dining” category, and Lark Creek Grill, located in Terminal 2, was named on the 10Best list for “Best Airport Bar/Restaurant Wait Staff”.

“Our approach to concessions involves a large mix of local businesses and local concepts, with over 75 percent of food, beverage and retail operators based in the San Francisco Bay Area,” said Airport Director John L. Martin. “This ensures that the unique tastes of our region are well-represented at SFO, and our concession revenues have clearly demonstrated the value of this approach. Having SFO recognized nationwide by the USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards is the ultimate validation of our efforts.”

SFO has been the prior recipient of national honors for its concession programs. In 2015, Airport Revenue News (ARN), the foremost publication on the airport revenue industry, recognized SFO with the “Best Overall Concession Program” award.

The Airport has also established innovative programs to facilitate local business participation. In January 2014, SFO launched an innovative “pop-up” concession concept in its newly-renovated Terminal 3, Boarding Area E. The concept allowed small businesses representing the San Francisco Bay Area to gain access to the Airport, with move-in ready facilities designed to reduce the initial start-up costs that challenge many small businesses.

A benchmarking report released in 2015 by the City and County of San Francisco’s Office of the Controller compared the business practices of SFO to similar large airports across the United States. Among its findings, the report noted that SFO generated the highest rate of gross concession sales per enplanement of any peer airport, at a rate of $34.60 per enplanement. This rate was $12.08 higher than any other peer airport.

Airport Revenue News (ARN) worked with industry experts to vet and nominate 15 finalists in this category, and USA TODAY 10Best readers had three weeks to vote daily for their favorites.